APPsolutely classified, and Facebook knows it

27 Feb 201701:24am IST

27 Feb 201701:24am IST

SaleApp Advertising is an IT start-up from Goa that was conceptualised by its three very young founders, Carlos Lobo, 22; Larrison Soares, 24 and Nathaniel Joseph, 21. SaleApp focuses on Digital marketing and advertising across Goa through interactive and engaging forms of digital media. VIKANT SAHAY met with the founders to find out how Goa’s very first online portal was created to specifically post newspaper classified advertisements in all local newspapers through the SaleApp Website and Android App

HERALD: How did it all begin?

TEAM SALEAPP: Nathaniel was only a teenager when he had the idea of an online portal to publish classified advertisements. He, an ex-commerce student from St Xavier’s Higher Secondary, Mapusa, suffered a rare health disorder. Doctors advised him rest and asked him to sell his motorcycle and buy a car for safer commuting. Nathan thought of selling his motorcycle by publishing a classified ad in the newspapers. To his dismay, he could not find a method to do this on his own, from home. That's when he decided why not offer a service for all potential advertisers that would not only simplify the entire ad posting process but also redefine it.

Nathan began pursuing his idea, met with Carlos Lobo, also a commerce student from the same college and a BBA Graduate in Hospitality to partner with him in this venture. Carlos loved the idea of the SaleApp concept and they together started working on it instantly. Since neither Carlos nor Nathan were good at artwork, Carlos asked his friend Larrison to help them out with the animation and creatives required. All three developedthe website and app within six months under the able guidance of Goan IT professional, Prajyot Mainkar and his team.

HERALD: How does your company help Goans?

TEAM SALEAPP: Our start-up is based with the sole intention of making it easier for all Goans to advertise in the newspapers of their choice. We have currently restricted ourselves to Goa as we ourselves being Goans, want to first establish our brand right here before we expand to other locations across India. Also we support other Goan start-ups and businesses by choosing them as our first preference for any jobs that needs to be done.

HERALD: Who are your major customers?

TEAM SALEAPP: Our major customers are people looking to hire employees, sell their personal assets such as their homes, vehicles, etc and also NRI's who want to advertise without the need to be physically present in Goa.

TEAM SALEAPP: Thanks to the tremendous support and encouragement from the people of Goa, in less than six months since our inception, we were selected for Facebook’s developer-focused programme “FbStart” which caters to the early-stage, mobile-focused start-ups. We are the first IT start-up from Goa to be selected for the programme. As part of the programme, our start-up will be provided with services and credits worth $40,000 (Rs 27 lakh equivalent). The services include mentorship from Facebook’s engineering teams and services from its partners like Amazon Web Services, Dropbox, Adobe, and MailChimp. Besides partners, it will give free access to more than 25 services including open source tools like React Native, FB Login, Account Kit and App Analytics. We are very proud of this achievement and we dedicate it to all Goans and especially the youth of Goa, hoping to inspire them to become entrepreneurs too, someday.

HERALD: How secure is the SaleApp Website?

TEAM SALEAPP: One thing that all of us at SaleApp agreed that we would not compromise whatsoever the level of security provided for our valuable customers. Even with a very limited budget we have opted for the latest 256-Bits SSL Encryption which is double the amount of security encryption provided by even the top rated e-commerce sites and payment gateways in India. Over and above we have also deployed SiteLock, the global leader in website security, that protects the SaleApp Website from hackers, spam, viruses, scams, removes malware, and provides PCI Compliance on a daily basis. The SaleApp Website currently has the highest ranking for website security, ie A+. Also our payment gateway partner, PayUMoney is one of the few payment gateways to be using the latest 256-Bits SSL Encryption as compared to the older and still extremely secure 128-Bits SSL Encryption. We can safely say SaleApp is definitely one of the most secure websites you will ever use.

HERALD: What is this new advertising medium called DMS that SaleApp has introduced in Goa?

TEAM SALEAPP: Digital Media Signage or DMS has been in the rest of India, especially metros and major cities for over a decade. It is now an accepted and routine medium for consumer products advertising. However, Goa has not seen a major presence due to the very small size of the market and the geographical constraints. To break through, SaleApp has already installed a Total of 37 DMS screens positioned for maximum visibility and prolonged viewing durations in 28 different locations across Goa. These are large 32“ HD (High Definition) LED Screens with the option of playing Audio-Video and also having remarkable viewing angles. We are simultaneously working on securing more locations across Goa. We have currently rolled out our DMS network in the top supermarket chains and some famous individual supermarkets across Goa, ie Magsons, AJ Supermarkets, Newton’s, The Goa State Co-Op Marketing and Supply Federation Ltd (commonly known as Sahakar Bhandar), Mapleleaf Supermarket, Norm's, etc.

HERALD: How do you see the Goan market?

TEAM SALEAPP: We do believe the Goan market is growing at a decent pace and we are glad to have established ourselves in our home state. With the recent funding from Facebook, we plan to use it to rapidly expand ourselves nationally. On any given day there are more than 2,000 classified ads posted across Goa, but there are well over 2,00,000 classified ads posted across India daily. We at SaleApp believe we can capitalise on this by providing the rest of India with a comfortable and safe method for booking their classified ads. We also expect to roll out our DMS network simultaneously.

HERALD: Where do you see your company in the next five years?

TEAM SALEAPP: In five years time, whenever an individual or organisation feels the need to advertise, SaleApp should be the first thing that comes to their mind. Our goal is to make SaleApp a one stop personal advertising assistant that allows all its users to access a safe, convenient and portable platform to book various types of ads. We plan to incorporate various forms of ad posting services including the traditional, like print as well as new revolutionary digital forms of advertising, like DMS; solely for our user's convenience and absolute customer satisfaction.